8th Assembly District Candidate Enrique Murguia (D) Won't Appear On The Wisconsin Partisan Primary Ballot In August

Murguia unfortunately came 3 elector nomination signatures short from 200 signatures required to get on the Partisan Primary Election Ballot in August.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

June 9, 2020

Madison, Wisconsin - On Thursday, the Wisconsin Election Commission (WEC) ruled that Enrique Murguia, the Democratic candidate for the Wisconsin 8th Assembly District won't get on the Partisan Primary Election Ballot in August simply because he failed to get at least three valid elector nomination signatures needed to get a spot on the ballot and according to the WEC, he came short from getting the total of 200 valid signatures required to get on the ballot. Murguia had a total of 197 valid nomination signatures, according to the WEC.

Murguia had turned in 253 nomination signatures, plus 6 signatures and 62 of those signatures were from the 9th Assembly District making them invalid after Jackson Weber, the manager for the JoAnna (JoAnna Bautch (D)) for Wisconsin campaign challenged Murguia's nomination signatures.

Candidate Bautch is State Representative JoCasta Zamarripa's sister. Zamarripa decided not to seek reelection for the State 8th Assembly District seat.

According to JoAnna's campaign page, it says, "JoAnna is also an out and proud member of the LGBTQ community."

So far, the WEC approved the following candidates to be on the Partisan Primary Election ballot in the State Assembly 8th District, Sylvia Ortiz-Velez (D), JoAnna Bautch (D), Angel J. Sanchez (R) and Ruben Velez (R). The highest vote getter in the Primary Election for each partisan political party will face off in the General Election in November.

In the 9th Wisconsin State Assembly District, the following candidates were approved to be in the August Partisan Election, Incumbent Marisabel Cabrera (D) and Christian Saldivar (D). Veronica Diaz, the only Republican on the ballot in the 9th Assembly District will face off the democrat that prevails in the Primary Election, in the November General Election.

Update: On Wednesday, the Wisconsin Election Commission (WEC) unanimously voted to keep Democratic candidate Enrique Murguia off the ballot due to only having 197 valid signatures and he failed to submit the required minimum of 200 elector signatures.

The Election Commissioners gave Murguia an opportunity to removed his challenge to stay on the ballot because his testimony indicated that certain addresses in his nomination papers that he collected were actually located on the 8th Assembly District, but an address verification check by the WEC indicated that Murguia was not telling the truth and he would be "digging a hole" for possible charges for making false statements, if he continued with the challenge. Murguia decided to withdraw his challenge to stay on the ballot.